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Akeem Spence: Potential Steal

August 24th, 2013

When Joe first learned that the Bucs were cutting loose Roy Miller, a fireplug of a nose tackle, Joe wondered why.

No, he never got to the quarterback. No, he couldn’t chase down runners. But he did what he was supposed to do and that was take heat off Gerald McCoy which enabled McCoy to wreak havoc. Bucs insiders would rave to Joe about how effective Miller was and how invaluable he was. Then why let him walk?

Well, for one, he was damaged goods. Understandable. Now, Joe isn’t worried one bit about Miller. Because his replacement is worlds better than him.

The Bucs drafted Akeem Spence out of Illinois in the fourth round and Joe vividly remembers Bucs fans moaning out loud about how the Bucs drafted a Big Ten player who didn’t get sacks. Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik should be ashamed of himself, they said.

Well, even Spence surprised the Bucs. Strong as an Adonis, Spence started to show he could do more than just eat up blockers. He could rush the quarterback and run down ball carriers. He just wasn’t asked to do that at Illinois. It was the Bucs’ pleasant surprise.

Saturday at Joe Robbie Stadium, Spence had four tackles including two for a loss, one came when Spence ran to his right to drag down a Dolphins running back in the right flat, something you would never see Miller do.

Yes, Spence was a bright spot. Love that big smile of his. From his tilted nose position, he was either getting double teamed (by design), or clogging up the middle and getting in the back field a few times. Looking forward to seeing more of Spence.

He did the same thing last week in NE…. Spence has had very good games the past 2 weeks.
And the good thing about his play is that it will not allow teams to Double GMC, and it will eventually free up the DEs to make plays because the offense can not slide protection or double.

Hey Joe, any nose tackle worthy of the title would give you a good back of the head “dope slap” for using the word “Adonis” in reference to his physique. They’re not “Adonises” nor want to be they’re proud of being built like a big ole grizzly bear – LOL.

And that’s just what Akeem Spence looks to be – one big old “grizz” in the middle for the Bucs. Spence’s play was most impressive last night in an otherwise lackluster Buccaneers game. He soaked up double teams like they were pork chops at the One Buc dining room, plugged the “A” gap like your daughter’s long hair in the bathtub drain trap, and spent enough time in Miami’s backfield that the Dolphins were starting to worry about being penalized for 12 men on the field.

I do notice that what is lost in all the kudos is that Spence was getting it done against Mike Pouncey who is reportedly one of the better centers in the NFL.

Now, Spence just needs to develop what John Madden called a “fat guy dance” in the movie “The Replacements” and we’ll be all set in the middle. I like the way this young man plays – old school football.

GMC it looks like you and your new partner should be able to wreak some havoc in the middle this season.